# Google Maps Directions Scraper (`crawlerbros/google-maps-directions`) Actor

Extract driving, walking, bicycling, and transit directions between any two locations from Google Maps - distance, duration, traffic, route alternatives, and turn-by-turn steps.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-directions.md
- **Developed by:** [Crawler Bros](https://apify.com/crawlerbros) (community)
- **Categories:** Travel, Automation, Developer tools
- **Stats:** 90 total users, 4 monthly users, 70.7% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event and usage. You are charged both the fixed price for specific events and for Apify platform usage.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## Google Maps Directions Scraper

Extract driving, walking, bicycling, and transit directions between any two locations from Google Maps — including distance, duration, traffic conditions, route alternatives, and turn-by-turn steps.

### What It Does

Provide an origin and a destination (as addresses, place names, or `lat,lng` coordinates), and this actor returns:

- **All route alternatives** Google Maps offers (up to 5)
- **Distance** in both human-readable form (`"1.2 mi"`) and integer meters
- **Duration** in human-readable form (`"8 min"`) and integer seconds
- **"via" road** for each route (e.g. `"via Broadway"`)
- **Traffic condition** notes when available (e.g. `"Moderate traffic"`)
- **Turn-by-turn step instructions** for the primary route (best-effort)
- **Resolved origin and destination** strings (what Google actually matched)
- **The final Google Maps directions URL** you can share or open in a browser

### Use Cases

- ETA calculators, courier and logistics planning, dispatch dashboards
- Travel-time monitoring between business locations
- Field-service routing and territory planning
- Sales and customer-visit scheduling
- Real-estate commute analyses
- Tourism / transit research

### Input

| Field | Type | Required | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| `origin` | String | yes | — | Starting location (address, place name, or `lat,lng`) |
| `destination` | String | yes | — | Ending location (address, place name, or `lat,lng`) |
| `travelMode` | Enum | no | `driving` | One of `driving`, `walking`, `bicycling`, `transit` |
| `language` | Enum | no | `en` | UI language (affects instruction text) |
| `units` | Enum | no | `metric` | `metric` or `imperial` distance preference |
| `avoidTolls` | Boolean | no | `false` | Driving mode — avoid toll roads |
| `avoidHighways` | Boolean | no | `false` | Driving mode — avoid highways/motorways |
| `avoidFerries` | Boolean | no | `false` | Driving mode — avoid ferry routes |
| `departureTime` | String | no | — | Optional ISO 8601 datetime for transit routing |
| `proxyConfiguration` | Object | no | — | Optional Apify proxy (used only as a fallback) |

**Example input:**

```json
{
  "origin": "Times Square, New York, NY",
  "destination": "Central Park, New York, NY",
  "travelMode": "driving"
}
```

**Walking directions:**

```json
{
  "origin": "Eiffel Tower, Paris",
  "destination": "Louvre Museum, Paris",
  "travelMode": "walking",
  "language": "en"
}
```

### Output

Each route alternative produces one dataset record:

```json
{
  "origin": "Times Square, New York, NY",
  "destination": "Central Park, New York, NY",
  "originResolved": "Times Square",
  "destinationResolved": "Central Park",
  "midpointLocation": { "lat": 40.7700, "lng": -73.9758 },
  "travelMode": "driving",
  "language": "en",
  "units": "metric",
  "routeIndex": 0,
  "distance": "1.2 mi",
  "distanceMeters": 1931,
  "duration": "8 min",
  "durationSeconds": 480,
  "via": "via Broadway",
  "trafficCondition": "Moderate traffic",
  "steps": [
    { "instruction": "Head north on Broadway", "distance": "0.3 mi" }
  ],
  "googleMapsUrl": "https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Times+Square/Central+Park/?hl=en&travelmode=driving",
  "scrapedAt": "2026-06-16T10:30:00+00:00"
}
```

Empty fields are omitted from the record.

### How It Works

- Loads the canonical Google Maps directions URL in a stealth Chromium browser
- Waits for route alternatives to render, then extracts them from the DOM
- Distance and duration strings are also normalised to integer meters / seconds for downstream analytics

### FAQ

**How many routes are returned per run?**
Up to 5 alternatives, in the order Google Maps shows them. `routeIndex: 0` is Google's recommended route.

**Why does Google sometimes resolve my origin/destination differently?**
Google Maps performs its own geocoding and may match the closest known place. The `originResolved` and `destinationResolved` fields show what it actually matched.

**Can I use coordinates instead of addresses?**
Yes — pass `"40.7580,-73.9855"` (or similar) as origin/destination and the actor will route between the exact points.

**Does this actor use cookies or login?**
No. Google Maps directions are public and require no authentication.

**Is a proxy needed?**
Usually not. The actor first attempts the run without a proxy, which is the most reliable approach for Google Maps. If you configure a proxy, it is used only as a fallback.

**What if Google Maps cannot find a route (e.g. between two continents for driving)?**
The actor will report no routes found and fail the run gracefully so you can see the issue in the status message.

### 🗺️ Complete Google Maps Scraper Suite

This actor is part of a comprehensive Google Maps data extraction toolkit by **crawlerbros**. All actors run on the free Apify plan, use no proxy by default, and return clean, structured data.

| Actor | What it does |
|---|---|
| 🏢 [Google Maps Business Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-scraper) | Extract business data — name, address, phone, website, rating, reviews, hours, amenities |
| ⭐ [Google Maps Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-reviews-scraper) | Scrape reviews with reviewer Local Guide level, photos, mentioned items, owner replies |
| 📸 [Google Maps Photos Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-photos) | Extract all photos from any place — max-resolution URLs, contributor info, categories |
| 🕐 [Google Maps Business Hours Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-business-hours) | Full 7-day hours, timezone, current local time, next open/close, holiday hours |
| 📊 [Google Maps Popular Times Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-popular-times) | Busy hours histogram for all 7 days + current busyness + typical visit time |
| 📧 [Google Maps Email Extractor](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-email-extractor) | Find business emails + social media links by crawling websites |
| 🗺️ [Google Maps Area Scanner](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-area-scanner) | Geographic grid scanning — bypass the 120-place limit with bounding box / circle / polygon |
| 💼 [Google Maps Leads Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-leads) | B2B lead generation with email + phone enrichment, US states + global countries |
| 🤖 [Google Maps MCP Server](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-mcp) | Unified MCP server combining search + reviews for AI assistants |
| 📍 [Google Maps Geocoding Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-geocoding) | Bidirectional geocoding — address ↔ coordinates, with address components |
| 🔗 [Google Maps Similar Places Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-similar-places) | "People also search for" / related place discovery — competitor & alternative finder |
| 🍽️ [Google Maps Menu Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-menu) | Restaurant menu items, prices, descriptions, photos |
| 📌 [Google Maps Nearby Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-nearby) | Find places near a coordinate point — lightweight POI search by category |
| 📋 [Google Maps Place List Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-place-list) | Extract Google's curated "Top X in Y" lists — best hotels/restaurants/things to do |
| 🌍 [Google Maps Timezone Scraper](https://apify.com/crawlerbros/google-maps-timezone) | IANA timezone + current local time from coordinates |

# Actor input Schema

## `origin` (type: `string`):

Starting location — full address, place name, or 'lat,lng' coordinate pair.

## `destination` (type: `string`):

Ending location — full address, place name, or 'lat,lng' coordinate pair.

## `travelMode` (type: `string`):

Mode of transportation.

## `language` (type: `string`):

Language of the directions page (affects step instructions text).

## `units` (type: `string`):

Preferred distance units. Google Maps may still localise based on the route's country.

## `avoidTolls` (type: `boolean`):

Driving mode only — avoid toll roads when possible.

## `avoidHighways` (type: `boolean`):

Driving mode only — avoid highways/motorways when possible.

## `avoidFerries` (type: `boolean`):

Driving mode only — avoid routes that use ferries.

## `departureTime` (type: `string`):

Optional ISO 8601 datetime (e.g. 2026-06-16T10:30:00) used for transit routing.

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Optional fallback proxy. The actor first tries without a proxy (more reliable for Google Maps); proxy is used only if the no-proxy attempt fails.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "origin": "Times Square, New York, NY",
  "destination": "Central Park, New York, NY",
  "travelMode": "driving",
  "language": "en",
  "units": "metric",
  "avoidTolls": false,
  "avoidHighways": false,
  "avoidFerries": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `directions` (type: `string`):

Dataset containing all scraped Google Maps direction records — one record per route alternative.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "origin": "Times Square, New York, NY",
    "destination": "Central Park, New York, NY",
    "travelMode": "driving",
    "language": "en",
    "units": "metric"
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("crawlerbros/google-maps-directions").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "origin": "Times Square, New York, NY",
    "destination": "Central Park, New York, NY",
    "travelMode": "driving",
    "language": "en",
    "units": "metric",
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("crawlerbros/google-maps-directions").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "origin": "Times Square, New York, NY",
  "destination": "Central Park, New York, NY",
  "travelMode": "driving",
  "language": "en",
  "units": "metric"
}' |
apify call crawlerbros/google-maps-directions --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,crawlerbros/google-maps-directions"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/cvIpSPdCwJMzo91of/builds/PLEB7XbhptCZN3IGk/openapi.json